Sub-zero Scotland in January

15th Jan to 22nd Jan 2024

Melrose Gibson Park 

Our intended target for this trip was the Highlands of Scotland as the weather forecast predicted some snow during the week. We love to walk in the hills after it has snowed, and even whilst it is snowing. To break the long journey (about 7 to 8 hours) we found a site that was open all year and who’s facilities we could rely on if the weather took a negative turn. This was Melrose Gibson Park Caravan and Motorhome Club site on the Scottish border. It sits on the outskirts of the town next to the Co-Op and across the road from Melrose Rugby Club. The site is not an open country park type of site but neither is it a city centre plot with vans sited close together. It’s a great comprise between the two, within easy walk of the pubs and restaurants in town and with the benefit of reliable club facilities even in January.  A perfect stop over for us on this trip.

Whist we were there we found a circular walk on the OS app. It was about 7 miles and took a route through Melrose, past the Abbey, along the river Tweed, through Abbotsford and Darnick. It was a cold fresh day with clear skies. Couldn’t ask for better.

Here are a few photos :

Grantown on Spey

The morning we left Melrose it was minus 6 degrees. The motorhome coped really well. Although the heating was having to work hard it remained warm and cosy inside and nothing froze up like fresh water or grey water. On the drive north was passed through one of our favourite sites – Blair Castle Caravan Park. It’s closed this time of year, but we stopped in the village for fuel and a bite to eat. The temperature had dropped to minus 8 and we were now driving through snow. We finally arrived in Grantown on Spey after traversing a very snowy Drumochter pass. The caravan site had 4 inches of lying snow with more to come – just what we were after.

We’ve been to this site before back in 2021 (https://arkmotorhomes.co.uk/great-scottish-rivers-tour-2021/). It’s an independent site, although it is affiliated with the Caravan and Motorhome Club. The facilities are a cut above what you can expect at a normal club site. A warm shower block even when it was minus 8 outside with powerful showers, and hot water that was too hot to stand under without turning it down a notch or two. The fully serviced pitch we had was spacious with a great views of the hills and surrounding scenario and all for less than the price of the Melrose Club site.

We spent 4 nights in Grantown on Spey, walking along the Spey, through the local hills and Anagach woods. We used routes on the OS app to guide us. As there was now 6 plus inches of snow on the ground, the paths were difficult to discern on some places. The OS app is GPS based so it made navigation a whole lot more predictable. We managed 7 to 10 miles each day before storm Isha started to close in and we decided to move south again.

We looked for an alternative stop-over location for the route home, but being January there is very little choice around the Scottish Lowlands so he headed back to Melrose. Storm Isha arrived at about 8pm and kept us awake for most of the night. Even though we were careful to park the motorhome facing into the wind, it still rocked on it’s suspension and the noise of the rain being hammered into the roof was incredible. The journey home the next day was similarly eventful. The water in the rivers and on the roads as we drove south was extraordinary. The gusting wind hadn’t fully embedded away so driving was difficult in a high sided motorhome with each large gust causing the anti-skid function to kick in and try and help. Sometimes technology doesn’t help. We passed 3 HGVs that had been blown over – one having closed the M6 at Tebay.

Motorhome Niggles

This being a brand new motorhome, I was expecting to notice something on its first outing:

1. Fridge wont operate on gas. The fidge in this motorhome automatically switches to the best source of power – mains hook-up, gas or engine alternator if we are moving. The issue with the fridge wiring has been fixed that was causing it to drain the leisure battery but now it can’t ignite the gas when it selects gas the best power source. Needs investigation and fixing by the dealer – TMD Motorhomes.
2. Reversing Camera – blue screen. A warranty claim has been accepted by Burstner but we are still awaiting the new camera before it can be replaced by TMD Motorhomes.
3. The door on one of the eye-level lockers is not aligned properly and it catching against the Fridge.

Round trip distance 820 miles according to google maps.